Starting with the titmouse, seventy-two transformations

Chapter 160 Settlement, Departure

Reuniting with old friends filled me with emotion.

Although we've only been apart for a little over a month, it feels like we've been separated for over a decade.

It evoked a complex mix of emotions.

Zhao Lei began to recount his experiences over the past month in a low voice. Zhao's sister-in-law, holding Gouwa, sat on the doorstep, occasionally adding a few words of advice.

Everything was just like it was back in Baishui Village.

Their family's experience is a microcosm of this era.

Insignificant, ordinary.

Even if a country person manages to find a job in the city through connections, they still can't escape being exploited.

Besides, Zhao Lei's family are all honest people.

There are tricks to everything in the archer unit, from offering tributes and burning money to doing dirty, tiring, and dangerous jobs.

He's new here and doesn't know how to get along with people. Even if he's good at archery, what good is it?
The archer unit has no shortage of archers.

Don't forget, there are quite a few martial artists in the city. For them, drawing a bow and shooting an arrow is nothing out of the ordinary.

"Brother Sheng, you snake..."

Sister-in-law Zhao shuddered as she recalled the scene from before and looked at the obedient little yellow dog clinging to Liu Sheng's forearm.

You should know that Niu Er is a martial artist!
"It's a different species."

Liu Sheng nonchalantly pinched Little Yellow, shook it, and handed it to the woman, which immediately startled her so much that she fell backward and landed face-first in the dirt.

This woman used to be very sharp-tongued, and she humiliated the original owner so much that she almost jumped into the river to commit suicide.

This can be considered as me "avenging" the original owner of this body.

"A mutant...that's equivalent to a musculoskeletal martial artist!"

Zhao Lei was taken aback. He had spent a month or two in the patrol office and had gained a basic understanding of demons.

The muscular warriors, in their archer unit, were like squad leaders, commanding fifty men and quite imposing.

This strange snake, at the level of a martial arts master, was now as obedient as a pet in his hands.

Then wouldn't he be...?

"Internal organ martial arts master".

Liu Sheng made a modest remark, but his words struck Zhao Lei like a thunderclap, leaving him stunned for a long time.

Even the centurions of their archer battalion were only at this level.

Has Brother Sheng taken some kind of magic pill? He's only been practicing martial arts for a little over a month, yet he's already accomplished what others have in a lifetime!

For a moment, the honest man rubbed his hands awkwardly, all the words he wanted to say stuck in his throat.

The gap in status and class is everywhere.

Liu Sheng didn't explain too much to him, so as not to make him uncomfortable, but instead asked about their future plans.

With his trip to Qingyuan Cave imminent, he needed to quickly settle Zhao Lei's family.

For no other reason than the few tits he brought that day.

returning a Favour many times more.

This is Liu Sheng's life belief.

"This archer unit is not going back."

Zhao Lei touched his newly grown left arm and hesitated.

Such a case of limb regeneration must be extraordinary, and if it is exposed, it may implicate Sheng Ge'er.

Even Funing County is not a safe place to stay; if we stay too long, our secret will be exposed.

It seems the only option is to return to Baishui Village...

"The village is gone."

Liu Sheng briefly described the current state of Black Wind Mountain's "growth".

He had passed through Baishui Village when he went into the mountains to see his family, but now only a dense forest remained there.

Hidden in the woods are the ruins of the village, where traces of its former existence can still be faintly seen.

Hearing Liu Sheng say this, Zhao Lei and his wife looked at each other in bewilderment.

Now they have no way out.

"Come stay at my place for a few days first, and then tell me when you've made up your mind."

Liu Sheng finally offered a suggestion.

In fact, he could have simply thrown down a few hundred taels of silver and walked away.

But doing so would absolutely harm their family.

Moreover, it would be good to find more familiar people for Grandma and Yu Niang to talk to and chat with, so they could pass the time.

In the end, after a brief discussion, Zhao Lei and his wife followed his advice and moved away with their entire family.

Two hours later.

Inside the cave, Granny Liu and Zhao Lei's family met and had endless things to talk about. Liu Sheng gave Old He a storage bag filled with a large amount of food, mainly dried meat, sausages, rice, and noodles, enough to feed them for eight to ten years.

And there's no need to worry about storage issues.

There was no other way; he had killed enough Qi Refining cultivators, and he already had several storage bags like that.

As usual, he distributed spider silk garments that had been cleansed of their aura, and then, when Old He had time, he taught the family martial arts.

Whether you teach Yu Niang and her daughter or three more people, it's still the same thing.

I don't expect them to be of much help in the future, but at least I hope they can protect themselves in case of trouble.

After giving his instructions, Liu Sheng took his leave.

Of course, to avoid any accidents, he also arranged for the ghost Xiao Yan to protect him from the shadows.

With a Qi Refining Master protecting them, Grandma and the others should have no worries about their safety.
-
Back to Hehuan Cave.

The ghost Caiyu had been waiting for a long time and immediately presented the ancient items she had collected, along with more than twenty secret manuals.

These are the results of half a day's work by it and other disciples of the Hehuan Sect.

Basically, they plundered everything they could find inside and outside Shanyang County.

After the harvest, the spiritual points finally recovered to over three thousand.

In crucial moments, the tiger-shaped incarnation can come in handy.

The trump card is activated.

The next step is to practice the martial arts techniques that have been collected.

With the experience from last night, Liu Sheng's cultivation progressed even faster.

Read it once and you'll master it; practice it once and you'll become proficient; read it two or three times and you'll grasp its true meaning; in less than a quarter of an hour, you'll reach the pinnacle.

What others might spend decades, or even a lifetime, honing their martial arts skills, is merely a matter of a cup of tea's time in his hands.

During that time, he was constantly taking drugs.

With the talent of "poison absorption", as long as they cannot be poisoned to death instantly, they will eventually become his powerful resources.

Others feared erysipelas, but he did not.

Others feared the "poison pill," but he was not.

After consuming a variety of elixirs, the vital energy and blood of the five internal organs were greatly enhanced.

It indirectly enhanced internal strength.

Night time.

When the ghost Qin Shuang returned, she reported the results of her investigation during the day.

"There are three demonic creatures in total, which meet the master's standards."

It was dispatched by Liu Sheng to investigate the demons within hundreds of miles of Black Wind Mountain and select a suitable target—

This was the object of Liu Sheng's transformation after he broke through to the true form.

"One is the Mountain-Bearing Turtle, which has the bloodline of the Mountain-Bearing Black Turtle; the other is the Ridge Frog, whose bloodline can be traced back to the Sky-Swallowing Clam."

Qin Shuang, the ghostly servant, paused here, her pupils slightly contracting:

"The third place is a silver-horned thunder bull, which can summon lightning and thunder, and should have awakened the bloodline of the Kui bull..."

Ridge frog?

After listening to Qin Shuang's account, Liu Sheng looked enlightened.

When he first transformed his peacock form into the Radiant Sparrow, he once flew to the depths of Black Wind Mountain and gazed at Jade Cauldron Lake.

At that time, he was attacked by a giant frog, which was as big as a small mountain and whose tongue could reach into the clouds when it leaped up.

He made up his mind then and there that he would definitely get his revenge someday.

In response, he even took his anger out on the giant frog's descendants.

Now, the seemingly invincible figure that once forced him to flee in disarray has become one of the candidates to transform into.

Indeed, the world is truly wondrous!

The other two demons also have their own unique characteristics, making it difficult to choose one over the other.

After much hesitation, Liu Sheng decided to put it aside for the time being.

Choose one of the three; any one is fine.

We'll decide whichever is closest when the time comes.

Moreover, perhaps something even more suitable will come along...

The next day.

It was just past the hour of Yin (3-5 AM).

Before dawn, the area outside the west gate of Shanyang County was already brightly lit.

The elites of the two government departments and one yamen, the elders and disciples of several major sects, and hundreds of wandering martial artists gathered together.

Dressed in fine clothes and riding a spirited horse, full of vigor and high spirits.

(End of this chapter)